Breaking Bad...Habits
A habit, is an unconscious pattern of behaviour that is acquired through repetition of requirement to fuel the need or want.
I realise now, that I was a comfort eater throughout my teens & early twenties, when ever I was stressed, upset or felt down & felt completely worthless I would want to habitually comfort myself with any junk food I could get my hands on.
I found myself overweight, depressed & being on a downward spiral path in a life that I wasn't for me. I feel like I've wasted my teens & my early twenties living a shell of a life, by having no confidence & no self esteem to put myself out there & that's time I've wasted that I'll never get back.
A Little Science or Biological Psychology....
From habitually eating junk food especially chocolate, biscuits, sweets & cake (I have a demon sweet tooth) all those bad sugars & nutrients were beginning to effect me biologically. Sugar in our diets causes our bodies to make insulin; so with this spike of insulin, our bodies now have this extra glucose, which races around our blood stream. The glucose when it reaches our brain it makes us produce more serotonin (the confidence hormone) this makes us more focused & confident.
Now, the trouble is if you have sugary foods throughout the day your constantly spiking you insulin & serotonin levels (sugar rush), once this has worn this has worn off, will feel lethargic & probably won't be in a good mood until you get your next fix, because your body has gotten used to this habitual cycle, it will cause you to crave these foods & when you attain these it also spikes your dopamine levels (succeed at meeting your needs hormone) which makes you happy & satisfied.
So, it's not only doing damage to your overall health, it's also damaging the receptors for these hormones in the brain, which creates a greater craving each time.
For me with the help of my lovely psychology degree, I could understand what was going on at a biological level with my body, why I was feeling the way I was, what causes it, and now was the time to control it.
Experts say it takes 45 days to change a habit, I'm not sure really how long it takes, I didn't time mine. But the point is, if you understand you're craving those sugary foods because you've habitually been feeding yourself that way, you should be able to change it, all it takes is for you to recognise your triggers, take some time to implement new ways of dealing with your cravings & the situations your in that makes you feel that way & some will power.
When I started for instance, when it got to morning break time, instead of having a chocolate bar or biscuits with my cuppa, I started have a piece of fruit, or a handful of unsalted mixed nuts, sometimes I wouldn't have anything & be stubborn & tell myself to wait until lunchtime, because I would have prepared a healthy lunch to eat. From making healthier choices, my cravings calmed down because I was giving my body something more nutrious to eat, that would keep it satisfied & keep my hormone levels balanced throughout the day.
Now, we understand how our brain works & makes us feel due to the food we eat, what about those situations that make us feel that way? When making a lifestyle change like I have, every so often it is wise to take a look around at the people & things in your life & have a bit of a tidy up. You will no longer want to be around pessimistic or narcissistic people (I call them dementors) like in Harry Potter, these people will suck the living soul out of you leaving nothing behind. You should only console yourselves with people who are optimistic, motivational & have your best interests at heart (as long as you have theirs too!) to continue on your journey. If you are unhappy with your job or any part of your life, the chance is now to change it, you have the power (a bit like He-Man).
When I went travelling in India, I learnt a lot about Hinduism, especially good & bad karma. It is important to cleanse yourself spiritually, mentally or physically or all 3 of any negative feelings, or people, or objects/situations in your life, the longer you carry them the more bad karma will be weighing you down. Once you have learnt the error of the negativity, you can be released learn to love yourself & others again (spread the love), if you give out good karma you will be rewarded with receiving good karma.
I'm not particularly religious, but I like the Hindu philosophy. You only get out, what you put in. The same goes for the body as well. Overtime, I have changed my mindset, from being negative about myself, to being completely positive & having the belief I can do anything. I look back over the last 3 years & realise that once I had removed all negativity from my life, & learned to understand my body, I could manipulate my mind; from my mind telling me what to do, to me telling it to shut up & that i can do this.
